Personal Note: Why We Do Fund Raising

First, I want to be accountable to those who have shared values and a common vision. I want our readers to be fully informed and to offer them greater ownership in the <?xml:namespace prefix = st1 ns = “urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags” />Baptist Center for Ethics. <?xml:namespace prefix = o ns = “urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office” />

From our very beginning, we have believed that BCE should be a publicly owned effort and felt the need to be accountable to our constituency. Fund-raising appeals are one way to give readers organizational information and enlist their deeper support for future initiatives.

We are most grateful for our institutional sponsors. In 2004, the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship provided 22.7 percent of our revenue. The Baptist General Association of Virginia, Baptist State Convention of North Carolina and Baptist General Convention of Texas supplied 22.2 percent of our support. Churches added 7.5 percent.

Yet we know that future growth depends on expanding individual contributions beyond the current level of 16 percent.

We think that the most effective, resilient and faithful organizations have a far greater number of supporting individuals who give according to their abilities to a lean entity that expresses their values and advances their vision. I hope you feel this way about BCE.

Second, I want to ensure an uncompromised future for EthicsDaily.com, thereby guaranteeing you an information source you can trust for cutting-edge, content-rich news; timely, helpful movie reviews; and provocative opinion pieces.

EthicsDaily.com has a rapidly expanding readership that has increased over 37 percent in the past year. It also has a global readership. Readers live in faraway places like Australia and Italy. Yet with the World Wide Web readers are a click away.

Through EthicsDaily.com, we have a platform that helps to shape values and the larger world’s perspective about thoughtful Baptists, something we think you want.

EthicsDaily.com is clearly emerging as one of the premier Christian Web sites. We need your support at the end of the year to ensure its unyielding commitment to a free and prophetic press.

Third, I want to gather the grain for the season ahead, giving us the underwriting for the educational resources we develop and churches use.

We offer the least expensive, most current educational materials available. We think that online resources demonstrate BCE’s good stewardship and enable churches to practice better stewardship of their education funds.

We have some great resources on the drawing boards for 2006—DVDs with online study guides. They will be better than anything we’ve produced to date. But we need your support now to underwrite their production.

Why am I asking for your support?

I ask because I think that together we can make a world of difference. With your support, we can do even more in 2006.

If you’ve already given this year, I repeat my thanks and ask you to consider another donation.

If you haven’t given yet, I ask you to consider giving today.

Click here to make an online contribution. Click here and scroll toward the bottom of the page for our address to mail BCE a check.

We are forever accountable, expectant and dependent,

Robert Parham is the executive director of the BaptistCenter for Ethics.